Diabetic Candy Exchange!!!

Yep, you read that right, our hospital, the one where Grace was diagnosed on January 9, 2009, hosts a 'Diabetic Candy Exchange' for all the Type 1 kiddos there. The pediatric nurses organize it, raise funds, provide entertainment, feed us dinner, solicit donations and run the whole thing.

Can I tell you that I hold them near and dear to my heart? Cause I do.

The day after Halloween, the kids are invited from 5-7 pm to come to the hospital, turn over any candy they do not want - any or all of it - you decide how much, and in return, they get a gift bag designed just for them - as in, you call and RSVP and tell them you have an 8 year old girl and what her name is, and they design a gift bag around her - can I tell you I really love them? Cause I do. Then, they get to choose gift cards or toys from a table too. Grace scored a giftcard to a local store last year and beamed the rest of the party. She gets to do crafts and party. She wasn't sad in the least that she gave away some her candy. Who would be, right?!

Last night was the candy exchange.

Here's the invite....

Here's where we dump the candy we do not want. That's a motherload of candy!!!

I did, however, want to rummage through the entire trashcan and pick out the winners for bringing up a low - the Smarties, Skittles, etc. Who would give those away? Am I crazy for wanting to do it? You should know that the little editor-man in my head told me it was a public event and there were people watching.
I didn't jump in and save the low-BGL-bringer-uppers.
I'm still sad about it.

Oh and she got her face painted! They all did!

She scored a $15 Target giftcard from the gift table and a giant goodie bag filled with girl delights. There were raffles too!

Oh and the characters from Star Wars showed up. Don't ask me why and don't ask me their names. They made me feel a little creepy if you ask me. Kids did love them though.

A master pumpkin carver!

Pizza - of course! (Don't get me started why every event we attend related to diabetes must be celebrated with pizza.) I felt like screaming "It's 35g a slice and up that temp basal to +50% for about 2-3 hours!!!!" We did and we rocked a 106 BGL 2 hours later

And of course, the nurses. Always the nurses. This special nurse was there when we were diagnosed, throughout our stay. She said beautiful words to us, assured us that it would be OK and that all would be fine. She holds a special place in our hearts and dutifully looks for Grace each year at the Exchange. I had to get a photo of them together. Her eyes teared up as she saw Grace. Grace lifted her shirt a tiny bit and said/yelled 'BAM!' and showed off her OmniPod pump on her belly. 

Yes, we have come a long way.